Factbox - Uzbekistan at the Asian Cup

(Reuters) - Factbox on the Uzbekistan team ahead of the Asian Cup, which takes place in the United Arab Emirates from Jan 5 to Feb 1:

FIFA world ranking: 95

Ranking in Asia: 14

Previous Asian Cups: 6

Best performance: Fourth place (2011)

2015: Quarter-finals

Nickname: White Wolves

Coach: Hector Cuper

Regular captain: Odil Ahmedov

Player to watch: Odiljon Xamrobekov

Recent form:

Sept 11 Uzbekistan 0-1 Iran Tashkent

Oct 13 Uzbekistan 2-0 North Korea Tashkent

Oct 16 Uzbekistan 2-0 Qatar Tashkent

Nov 15 Uzbekistan 0-0 Lebanon Gdansk

Nov 20 Uzbekistan 0-4 South Korea Brisbane

Fixtures:

Group F

Jan 9 Uzbekistan v Oman Sharjah

Jan 13 Turkmenistan v Uzbekistan Dubai

Jan 17 Japan v Uzbekistan Al Ain

Uzbekistan’s neat passing game has made them Asian Cup regulars since the nation emerged from the Soviet Union and they will be looking to finally go a step further than their single semi-final spot in 2011 under former Valencia coach Cuper.

Versatile midfielder Odiljon Xamrobekov was the standout player when the White Wolves won the under-23 Asian Cup in January and he will no doubt feature somewhere in Cuper’s side.

The Uzbeks did not enjoy a stellar 2018 otherwise but should have enough quality to get out of Group F, even if it is behind four-times champions Japan.

Compiled by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru; editing by Sudipto Ganguly